1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the termination of multi-conductor flat flexible cable and in particular to a method and apparatus for assuring proper spacing of the conductors of the cable at the point of engagement with the respective terminals of the connector.
2. The Prior Art
The most relevant prior art is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,820,055, which is assigned to the present assignee, and represents a product well known in the electrical connector industry as the AMPLATCH connector. While this product has achieved substantial success in the industry, there has always been a limited degree of difficulty in employing the product due to the inaccurate spacing of conductors in most of the commercially available cables. When the product is to be terminated with a cable on the 0.050 inch centers, the terminals can be accurately located in the molded cavities of the housings of the connector. However, the conductors of the cable frequently wander several thousands of an inch from their correct center line and thus could be in positions where they would be severed by the arms of the terminal or perhaps would altogether miss engagement with the arms.
The present invention endeavors to abviate the difficulties of the prior art by dealing with the problem of inaccurate spacing of the conductors in the cable to make the conductors conform to the accurate positioning of the terminals in a housing member.